Inside this book, you find chapters arranged in six parts. Each chapter breaks down into sections that cover various aspects of the chapter’s main subject.The chapters are in a logical sequence, so reading them in order (if you want to read the whole thing) makes sense. But the book is modular enough that you can pick it up and start reading at any point.Here’s the lowdown on what’s in each of the six parts.

Part I: Getting Started with Networking The chapters in this part present a layperson’s introduction to what networkingis all about. This is a good place to start if you’re clueless about what a network is and why you’re suddenly expected to use one. It’s also a great place to start if you’re a hapless network user who doesn’t give a whit about “optimizing network performance,” but you want to know what the network is and how to get the most out of it.